


Things I Love About You (or Happy Valentine's Day, Haru-chan)

by sataninayellowdress



Category: Free!
Genre: Brief Smut, Fluff, Humor, M/M, Nagisa is a Little Shit, Tumblr: makoharufestival, Valentine's Day, apparently I can't write without adding smut?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-15
Updated: 2014-02-15
Packaged: 2018-01-12 11:42:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,126
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1185828
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sataninayellowdress/pseuds/sataninayellowdress
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's Makoto's and Haru's first Valentine's Day together.<br/>Basically, Haru hates Valentine's Day, Makoto is hell-bent on doing something special, Rei is as embarrassed as ever and Nagisa is a little shit.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Things I Love About You (or Happy Valentine's Day, Haru-chan)

**Author's Note:**

> This was supposed to be a short fic, but then I got a bit carried away. And apparently I can't write without adding in some smut. Also, this is unedited and maybe a little rushed because I'm super exhausted so hopefully there aren't too many errors! :T  
> (But if there is let me know so I can go in and fix 'em!)  
> Written for the Makoharu Festival tumblr "Valentine's Day" challenge (you can vote [here!](http://makoharufestival.tumblr.com/post/76720793864/challenge-valentines-day-user-previously) Also I don't know why my url didn't show on that post, but it's [plantbased-princess](http://plantbased-princess.tumblr.com) if you'd like to follow! :3)  
> Happy Valentine's Dst Free!dom! <3

_“Valentine’s Day is in a week!”_

It’s what Nagisa had said before class started, voice squeaking with excitement, throwing his arms around Rei. Rei had blushed and tried to shove Nagisa off of him, but to no avail. Makoto turned to look at Nagisa, eyes wide and mouth slack, caught somewhere between surprise and terror. He looked at Haruka, who was still quietly thumbing through his textbook at his desk, face unchanged and clearly indifferent toward Valentine’s Day only being, _apparently_ , a week away. He turned back to look at Nagisa, who had begun nuzzling his face into Rei’s shoulder.

 “W-what?” Makoto had said, shock resonating in his voice.

Nagisa had taken a moment from smothering the shoulder of an incredibly embarrassed Rei to look over at Makoto, eyes lit with childish delight.

“The day of love, Mako-chan!” Nagisa clasped his hands together dramatically under his chin. “Valentine’s Day—the day for confessions of true love, romance, chocolate, and sex.”

 _“N-Nagisa!”_ Rei had chided, the blush across his cheeks managing to become even darker.

Nagisa and Rei had gotten into their usual banter, and Makoto slid into his seat next to Haru, who was still wearing the same uninterested expression.

“Haru-chan, did you know that Valentine’s Day was in a week?!”

Haru glanced over at him, vague annoyance in his eyes. “I don’t really care. And lay off with the ‘chan’ already.”

+++

It’s what Nagisa had said before classes started that led to the current moment—Makoto sitting in a café across from Nagisa and Rei, two days before Valentine’s Day, panic swelling in his chest because he still hadn’t thought of what to do for Haru-chan.

_I’m the worst boyfriend ever._

“Well what did Rin-chan say?”

Makoto could feel a blush forming on his cheeks as he looked away from Nagisa’s hopeful expression, cradling his cup of tea in his hands. “Ah...he said something about...his plans being candles and... _handcuffs..._ and a _whip_...and suggested I do the same thing?”

“Wow! I didn’t know Ai-chan was into _that!_ ” Nagisa beamed. Makoto turned back to him, eyes wide, gripping his tea so hard that it nearly shot out from between his sweaty palms like a hockey puck. Nagisa, however, didn’t seem at _all_ phased by the idea. Rei’s eyes were just as wide as Makoto’s, face contorted into an expression somewhere between appalled and _what the actual fuck_.

“Sounds like fun, ne, Rei-chan?” Rei look over at Nagisa, the same expression still firmly etched into his face. Nagisa all but batted his eyes lashes at him, scooping up some of the whip cream from Rei’s strawberry parfait with his finger and sucking it into his mouth in a _ridiculously_ suggestive way. “I think that’s what we should do, too.”

“ _Na-Nagisa-kun!”_ Rei scrambled at the table, attempting to grip onto it for dear life because, judging by the look on his face, he was afraid that he might _combust_ right there in his seat, and in the effort of reaching for some solid object for purchase, sent his spoon flying a good twenty feet.

Nagisa pointed and laughed as if it were the funniest damn thing he had ever seen, and Makoto had to cover his mouth with both hands too keep from laughing too loud. Rei, on the other hand, looked _slightly_ less than amused.

“Oh my _god,_ Rei-chan!” Nagisa choked out between sobs of laughter. “You should _see_ your face!”

Rei crossed his arms and glared as some spot on the other side of the room, mouth pursed into a straight line and eyebrow twitching from sheer embarrassment.

“Aw, come on Rei-chan,” Nagisa said after he had calmed down enough to form a sentence without gasping for air. He latched on to Rei’s shoulder and gave his best doe-eyed pout. “I was just _teasing_ you. Please forgive me?”

Makoto knew that once Rei saw the look on Nagisa’s face he’d break, and sure enough, when Rei turned his head to look at his boyfriend, all sappy eyes and pouty lips, the tension in his shoulders frittered away and a warm smile appeared on his face, as if the whole _you just embarrassed the living HELL out of me_ thing never happened. He sighed and looked down into his parfait, though his smile was still firmly in place.

“It’s alright, Nagisa-kun.” Rei looked up at the ceiling for a moment, apparently thoughtful, before looking at Nagisa again, who was all but _perched_ on his shoulder. “I guess it was a little funny.”

Nagisa grinned. “It was fucking _hilarious_ , Rei-chan!” Rei just sighed again and rolled his eyes, hopeless, though there was affection in his expression.

“Anyway,” Nagisa said, turning to look at Makoto, his head still resting on Rei’s shoulder and arms wrapped around his bicep. “Now that we’ve established what path _not_ to take, have you asked Haru-chan what he wants to do?”

Makoto slumped back in his chair and sighed. “I tried, but he said that he doesn’t want to do anything. He thinks Valentine’s Day is stupid.”

Nagisa sat upright suddenly, almost pulling Rei right out of his chair, seemingly offended that Haru would even _consider_ besmirching the name of Valentine’s Day.

“How dare he!” Nagisa practically yelled, making Rei wince.

“Really, Nagisa-kun, do you have to _yell_?” Rei shifted in his seat until he was no longer almost falling out of it, giving the blonde-haired boy next to him his _Dammit Nagisa Would You Please Calm Down_ look.

Nagisa looked at Rei with utter disbelief. “But Haru-chan says Valentine’s Day is stupid! How can he insult something as _pure_ and _wonderful_ as Valentine’s Day?! What a Grinch!”

Rei adjusted his glasses in defeat, _The Look_ obviously not working. “The Grinch has nothing to do with Valentine’s Day, Nagisa-kun. That’s Christmas.”

“Oh, whatever! You _know_ what I mean!” Nagisa looked back to Makoto, a look of determination in his pink eyes that border lined feral. “It’s your duty to prove him otherwise, Mako-chan!”

“You guys are really aren’t any help,” Makoto said, but not without affection.

Nagisa didn’t pay attention to what Makoto had said, continuing his speech with the volume of his voice rising. “Do whatever it takes! Smother him with affection! Take him on a super fancy and romantic date! Give him such a good fucking that—“

“ _Nagisa!_ ” Makoto and Rei chided in unison. Nagisa just looked between them, dumbfounded by their outburst, not even realizing that he was half way out of his seat with his fist in the air like he was giving some kind of presidential speech.

“Oh,” he said, putting a hand over his mouth and sitting back down in his chair. “Heh, I guess I got a little _excited_. Sorry.”

Rei sighed and shook his head. “I think what Nagisa-kun is trying to say, Makoto-senpai, is that you should do something special for Haruka-senpai.”

Makoto groaned into his cup of tea. “But he doesn’t _want_ to do anything, and I don’t know what _to_ do. That’s the problem!”

“Hmm. Yes, I see how that is problematic.”

“Have either of you two even been _listening_ to me?”

“Of course we have!” Nagisa protested, pouting slightly. “But no one knows Haru-chan better than you, so if you don’t know what to do, how are _we_ supposed to know? Besides, you don’t like any of _our_ ideas anyway!”

“I don’t exactly think reciting a sonnet is going to work with Haru, and I’m _definitely_ not buying him a _vibrator_.”

“You’re no fun, Mako-chan,” Nagisa sighed, waving him off. “Your sex life must be so _boring._ ”

Makoto quirked an eyebrow at Rei, whose mouth was agape for the umpteenth time that day. “Wait, he’s not serious! I—we don’t—it’s not like—Nagisa would you please stop _laughing_ for god’s sake!”

Makoto shook his head and chuckled at the pair of ridiculous boys sitting before him. “Like I said, no help.”

+++

School the next day was pretty uneventful, save for the fact that Makoto couldn’t focus on _anything_ because he couldn't stop himself from freaking about Valentine’s Day, a constant mantra of _oh my god it’s tomorrow what am I going to even **do**_ running through his mind.By the time he and Haru were walking home, he was still so distracted that he didn’t realize that Haru had been saying something to him.

A firm, “Makoto” from Haru brought him out of his thoughts.

“Huh?”

Haru narrowed his eyes slightly. “I asked you if you were alright. Twice.”

Makoto let out a nervous chuckle. “Of course!” he lied, which he knew was an incredibly _bad_ idea as soon as the words left his mouth. Haru always knew when he was lying, and a lot of the time Haru would just let it go, knowing that the guilt Makoto would feel for doing so would make him fess up the truth in a matter of minutes. Other times, when he was feeling particularly annoyed with Makoto, like _now_ , he would give him _Haru Look #56_ , alternately titled the _Cut the BS Already_ look in Makoto’s internal book of Haru’s Looks.

Makoto sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, smiling softly. “I guess I’m just a little out of it, is all.”

Haru quirked an eyebrow slightly, donning _Haru Look #2_ , or his _Whatever_ look, which doesn’t cause much of a change in his expression and wouldn’t be inherently obvious to the casual observer, but Makoto is Makoto and happens to be very Haru-intuitive, _thank you very much._

Haru stayed quite for the remainder of the walk and Makoto yammed on like usual, until they had to part ways until Makoto went over later. He tended to part ways by giving Haru a quick, chaste kiss on the lips, but it became clear that Haru just _wasn’t_ having that when he put his hands on Makoto’s hips and pulled him flush against himself. Haru licked his way into Makoto’s mouth, earning a soft gasp in response, deepening the kiss until their hands were tangled in each other’s hair.

Makoto was practically panting when he pulled away, just far enough to see Haru’s eyes, which were glistening with _Haru Look #71_ , or his _You. Me. Bed. Now._ Look, to which Makoto giggled.

“Later, Haru-chan, okay? I have to go home first. I promised the twins I’d help them with their homework.”

He kissed Haru on the top of his nose, making his eyes go wide and his cheeks go rosy. He looked away and made a noncommittal sound, which Makoto figured was as good an answer as any.

+++

After helping the twins with their homework (and “helping” mostly meaning Ren and Ran fighting for the sole attention of their big brother) and helping his mother with the dishes, he went to his room and flopped down on his bed, panic over the impending holiday beginning to well in his stomach again. He pulled out his phone and dialed Nagisa’s number.

“Mak-chan! What’s up?” came his eager greeting.

“Hi, Nagisa,” Makoto chuckled. “I, uh...I need some help.”

“Of course, Mako-chan! What is it?”

 Makoto let out a deep sigh. “It’s about Valentine’s Day. It’s _tomorrow_ and I still haven’t figured out what to do and I’m panicking and _god_ I feel like such a bad boyfriend and—“

“ _Whoa,_ Mako-chan! Slow down!”

He bit his bottom lip and let out a nervous giggle, not realizing that he had begun rambling, and blushes slightly. “Ah, sorry, Nagisa.”

“It’s okay, Mako-chan!” Nagisa giggled into the phone. “I’ve never heard you so nervous before!”

“W-well, I mean, it’s our first Valentine’s Day together and I just want to make it...special.” Makoto felt his face grow a little hotter as soon as the words left his mouth.

“Awww, Mako-chan!”

“ _Nagisaaa,”_ Makoto groaned, throwing a hand over his face in embarrassment.

Nagisa giggled again. “Okay, okay, I’m sorry, Mako-chan. So you don’t have _any_ ideas?”

“I...no.”

“Well you could always go with my _original_ idea.”

“Nagisa,” Makoto huffed, “I already told you that—“

“I’m kidding, Mako-chan! Jeez! I’m just trying to get you to relax a bit! I mean, maybe I’m a little serious but—”

“ _Nagisa._ ” Makoto chided in that affectionate way that usually only mothers can. “I...I just really need your help here. I have no idea what to do and I feel horrible.”

“Don’t worry, Mako-chan. We’ll figure this out!” Makoto could hear the smile in his voice, and it made him relax a little. “Let’s brainstorm!”

Makoto nodded to himself. “Okay. Well, I asked Haru if he wanted to go out somewhere, to dinner or something, but he said no. I asked him if he wanted to do something else to celebrate but he said Valentine’s Day was stupid and gave me _Haru Look Number 20._ ”

“What does that mean?”

Makoto mentally scolded himself for letting that slip out of his mouth, not having done so intentionally. Nagisa was probably going to think he was completely _ridiculous._ “Ah...He said he didn’t want to, and that he was getting really annoyed with me.”

“Wow! You really _can_ interpret Haru-chan’s looks!” He was afraid Nagisa was going to start making fun of him, but he sounded more in _awe_ than anything. “Hmmm. So he doesn’t want to go out and do anything, right?”

“Right.”

“Hmmm. Maybe you’re trying too hard, Mako-chan.”

“ _What?_ ” Makoto protested, feeling his mouth go slightly agape. He’d be lying if he said he didn’t feel just a little _insulted_ by that, but then again, it was Nagisa, and Nagisa never meant anything but well. “What do you mean I’m ‘trying too hard’”?

“Well...you, like, want to make V-Day special, right? Which is awesome, but maybe you’re trying to make it too big, you know? Like you want to celebrate in a big way, but Haru-chan doesn’t. So maybe you should try celebrating in a small way! Instead of trying to take Haru-chan out on a fancy date, maybe you two should just hang out and eat chocolates or make dinner together or something!”

“Wow.” He hadn’t even considered doing _anything_ like that, being too hell-bent on trying to make Valentine’s Day grandiose. It seemed like such a simple, obvious solution, and he felt more than a bit like an _idiot_ for not thinking of a stay-at-home date himself. Makoto grinned as he felt the swelling panic in his chest finally break. “That’s a great idea, Nagisa! I can’t believe I didn’t think of that. You’re quite the romantic!”

Nagisa chuckled, sounding quite pleased with himself when he spoke. “What can I say? Rei-chan brings that out in me!”

Makoto chuckled into the phone. “I guess I _could_ try to cook dinner. I think I’ve seen Haru make mackerel enough times to know how to—“

“Oh, oh! You should right him a love letter! That would be so cute!”

“But Nagisa, what would I—“

And then it dawned on him. He shot up to a sitting position, a lopsided grin on his face.  He couldn’t believe it had taken him so long to come up with it, but regardless, it was _perfect_. It was simple and wasn’t costly or extravagant and, most importantly, it was full of love and meaning.

“Nagisa! You’re a _genius_! I just came up with the _best_ idea! With help from you, of course.”

“A genius, huh? I like the sound of that, Mako-chan! So what is it?!”

“Well, before I tell you, I’m going to need more of your help. I’m going to need you to be a distraction.”

Makoto could practically hear Nagisa grin as he spoke. “Oh, something sneaky, huh? Count me in!”

+++

After devising a plan with Nagisa, Makoto called a quick good-bye to his family and headed out. It wasn’t even a second after he opened the door and Haru practically jumped him, wrapping his arms around the taller boy’s neck and pulling him down into a heated kiss. When they finally pulled apart, each was panting slightly.

“What took Makoto so long? I was about to do it myself.”

“Do wha—“ Haru was looking at him intently, eyes glistening with his _You. Me. Bed. Now._ look.

Oh.

_Oh._

He had almost forgotten about that—their slightly more than PG-13 parting after school.

They rushed up the stairs to Haru’s room so quickly that Makoto almost didn’t even know how they got there, and once he came to, Haru was already naked and laying on his bed in a completely _lewd_ position, one hand teasing his already hard member and the fingers of the other hand teasing his entrance. Makoto just stared at the beautiful sight, licking his lips, not even realizing that he was somehow shirtless. Haru looked over at him, a vague glimmer of annoyance peeking through the heavy veil of _want_ in his eyes, clearly wanting Makoto to _fuck him already, thanks_ , but Makoto was in such awe of the sight of his deliciously displayed boyfriend that he couldn’t do much more than look on. With the intent of grabbing his boyfriend’s attention (and hopefully some other parts of him as well), Haru began to finger himself, slowly at first before picking up speed.

“ _Makoto,_ ” Haru moaned, his voice low and gravelly and _really really fucking sexy_. He looked over at Makoto, who was in the process of removing his boxers and still staring at Haru, but with a newfound hunger in his eyes. Makoto climbed on top of him, gently tugging his fingers out of his hole and pinning both hands above his head. It came out as a whisper when Haru said, “ _Please.”_

That’s all it took to get Makoto to slam inside of his boyfriend to the hilt, both of them hissing at the sensation. He set a steady, forceful pace, turning Haru onto his side and slinging his left leg over his shoulder, just a _little_ bit deeper with each thrust until he was _there_ , hitting that spot over and over again, moaning into the side of Haru’s leg as he watched the boy beneath him take a firm grip on his cock and stroking in tandem with Makoto’s thrusts. Makoto rolled him onto his back again and leaned down for a rough kiss, pulling away in time to see his face, twisted in pleasure, as he came between their bodies, a low and drawn out _Makoto_ falling from his lips.

Haru took his Makoto’s face in his hands, pressing their foreheads together, eyes locked, and whispered, “ _Come for me, Makoto._ ”

And that was pretty much all it took.

Makoto flopped down next Haru, sleepy and sated. Haru placed a quick kiss to his lips before moving to get up.

“I’m going to take a bath. Are you coming?”

“I...uh...sorry, Haru-chan. I can’t. I have to go home tonight.” Makoto bit his lip, anxious, and it felt like forever before Haru responded.

“Okay,” he finally said, pulling on a pair of sweats. “I’ll see you tomorrow then. And drop the –chan.”

Makoto just smiled his best smile, and Haru headed for the bath, shutting the door behind him. Makoto let out a relieved sigh and leapt out of bed, pulling on his pants and grabbing the back he dropped by the door.

_Time to set the plan in motion._

+++

When Haru awoke in the morning, he looked over at his clock only to find that he couldn’t see the numbers. There was _something_ blocking them—what looked like a piece of paper of some sort. He sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, and grabbed the piece of—pink?—notebook paper.

 _Happy Valentine’s Day, Haru-chan,_ it read. _It’s our first Valentine’s Day together, and I wanted to do something special. But I know you didn’t want to celebrate in a big way...but what about in a small way? So I’ve hidden little notes all around about the things I love about you, but nowhere to difficult. Can you find them all? If you can, you’ll get a surprise tonight._

_Love, Makoto ♥_

Haru stared at the note for a long while after reading it, eyebrows furrowed, attempting to stifle his curiosity. _Stupid Makoto._ He _knew_ that Haru didn’t care for Valentine’s Day, let alone sentimental things in general, and this note was practically _screaming_ both of those things. In spite of that, though, Haru couldn’t stop the small smile from forming on his lips. Makoto had seemed to go through a lot of trouble to do this, to try and be _romantic,_ and more so to try and make Haru let him be. He sighed and bit his lip; if Makoto put in the time and effort to do something like this, then he _guessed_ he could humor his boyfriend just this once. He huffed again and set the not down on his bed and pads across his room to his dresser.

When he opens the drawer that contains his meticulously folded jammers, something catches his eye. Stuck to a pair of his jammers is a bright pink sticky note. Haru quirks an eye brow and pulls the note free.

 _#1. I love the way you look when you wake up,_ it reads. Haru can feel his face heat up and a blush forms on his face. He shakes his head and scoffs, grabbing a pair of jammers and tossing the note on his bed along with the other one and headed toward the bath.

Not long after he was submerged in the warm water, Makoto was knocking on the bathroom door, letting himself in after a moment. He held out his hand to Haru, like he always does, and smiled that smile, _like he always does_ , and _damn him_ for doing things that made it hard for Haru to be annoyed with him.

“Good morning, Haru-chan.”

Haru rolled his eyes, to which Makoto chuckled, taking the taller boy’s hand and allowing himself to be pulled out of the water. “Drop the –chan.” He vaguely wondered whether or not he should say anything about the notes he found, or ask about exactly _how many_ he was supposed to find, but decided not to, for the sake of not wanting to ruin his boyfriend’s fun.

He dried himself off on the way to him room, Makoto trailing not far behind, and slipped on his uniform. He went to grab the textbook on his desk to shove it into his back, but when his hand touched the cover, he hesitated. _Something_ was telling him to open the book and check, and so he did, trying to be as surreptitious as possible.

On the very first page, another pink sticky note. _#2. I love the way your nose crinkles when you’re studying really hard. (I bet you thought I didn’t notice that one!)_

Haru’s eyes went wide and his mouth slightly slack, the blush from earlier coming back, creeping up his neck and tingeing the tips of his ears pink. He slammed the cover of the book shut with more force than necessary and hastily shoved it into his bag.

“Something wrong, Haru-chan?” Haru could practically hear Makoto simpering, _damn him_.

Haru huffed out a _no_ before quickly turning on his heel and walking past Makoto.

+++

Haru was really, _really_ hoping to get through the day without any not incidents, but of course, instead he ended up spending the majority of the day blushing furiously.

Number 3 was inside of his locker. _I love your smile._

Number 4 was stuck to the top of his bento. _I love the way your eyes light up when someone mentions mackerel. It’s so cute!_

Number 5 was stuck to his goggles, which were sitting at the bottom of his school bag. _I love the way you look when you swim. So peaceful. So passionate. You’re so beautiful, Haru-chan._ (This one, incidentally, made his blush the most).

By the time the school day ended, he’d found eight more, all strategically stuck in locations that Makoto knew Haru would notice. It was...well, he didn’t know what. Embarrassing? Annoying? Cute? But most likely, it was a mix of all of those. He shook his head and tried to clear his mind, because at the current moment he was focused on preparing for his race with Rin (Nagisa has bounded up to him after class, Rei along with him, telling him how Rin had called him last night and said to tell Haru that he wanted to have another race. This, of course, was a load of _crap_ ; Nagisa was playing his part in Makoto’s plan by distracting Haru long enough for him to get away and put the finishing touches on his Plan. Nagisa was convincing enough, and Rei had to cover his mouth to hide the fact that he was giggling under his breath. When Haru asked if they were coming too, they declined, stating that they already had plans for Valentine’s Day. When he turned around to ask Makoto if he was going to come, he wasn’t there. Annoyance and hurt flared through him, but he headed for Samezuka anyway).

And so Haru stood in Samezuka Academy’s changing room, alone, waiting for Rin. The swimmers finally started to shuffle in just as he was beginning to get impatient, and Rin spotted him as soon as he came in.

“Haru? What the hell are you doing here?” Rin walked over, a towel around his shoulders and a mildly amused expression on his face.

Haru rolled his eyes. “I’m here to race, obviously.”

“What?”

“Nagisa said you called him and told him you wanted to race me. So let’s go.”

“ _What?_ I didn’t tell Nagisa shit.”

Haru just looked at him, his face contorting into an expression that said _are you the idiot here or am I?_

“I think they’re messing with you, dude.”

Haru just blinked. “So you don’t want to race?”

Rin awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. “Ah, normally I’d be down to race, but I have plans with Nitori. Y’know, for Valentine’s Day and all.”

Haru quirked an eyebrow, but didn’t say anything. _They tricked me? Was Makoto in on this?_

Haru left Samezuka and headed home, but not before securing a _real_ race with Rin.

+++

When he finally got to his house, the lights were already on, indicating that Makoto was there, _for some reason_ , and there was yet _another_ pink sticky note staring him down, this one stuck to his door.

_#14: That’s it! This is the last note! I already know you found them all, so come in and get your surprise. I love you, Haru-chan._

Haru blushed for the umpteenth time that day, snatching the note from his door and shoving it in his pocket before stepping inside his house. “Makoto?” he called. He could hear want sounded like muffled grunts coming from the direction of the kitchen, and when he walked in to investigate, the sight made him stop in his tracks.

The sink was full of dishes, and there were even _more_ dishes strewn about the counters, along with various cooking ingredients. There was smoke coming from the stove, flour spilled on the floor, the sound of something cracking and sizzling angrily, and in the middle of all the mess, Makoto stood. He was still wearing his uniform slacks but was shirtless, Haru’s apron tied around him, and he appeared to be trying (and failing) to fry something.

“ _Shit!_ ” Makoto cursed when a stray drop of oil shot up from the pan and caught him on the arm. His attention was divided between a frying pan with now-burning mackerel, a small sauce pot with some sort of sticky liquid bubbling in it, and a cookbook. He glanced at the clock and gasped, setting the charred mackerel aside and slipping on some oven mitts. He opened the oven door and bent down to take something out. From what Haru could see, Makoto had pulled out something that looked chocolaty and not _quite_ done yet, but Makoto looked pleased with himself.  He tried to lift the open oven door back up with his foot, the cake (as it turned out to be) still in his hands. However, being as ungraceful as he is in the kitchen, Makoto bumped the hot part of the over door with his foot, yelling out another “ _shit!_ ” and trying hop away from the heat, not balanced at all, wobbling all over the place and sending the cake to the floor with a muffled _plop_.

Makoto looked like he was on the verge of tears, and as much as he didn’t want to, Haru couldn’t help the full, down-from-in-you-belly laugh that erupted from him.

Makoto looked up, a mix of mortification and awe on his face.

“ _H-Haru?_ ”

After a minute, Haru walked further into the kitchen, avoiding the ruined cake, and place his hands on Makoto’s chest.

“Makoto,” Haru said, amusement seeping into his voice, smile still on his face.

“I-I’m sorry, Haru. I tired really heard and...” Makoto couldn’t help it when his words started free-flowing from his mouth, distraught and a little whiny and _ridiculously cute._ “...and I just wanted to make today special even though you hate Valentine’s Day I just really wanted to try and do something but I screwed it up and I made a mess and this whole thing was just really stupid and I’m _sorry_.”

“Makoto, don’t say such stupid things.”

“W-What?”

Haru sighed, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend’s neck and placing a chaste kiss to his lips. “The whole thing wasn’t stupid.”

“I...Really?”

“It was...cute. And I appreciate you doing all of that.” Makoto was speechless, and Haru took his silence as a cue to continue. “You didn’t have to do all of this, though. I already know you love me. But, even so, it was still...nice.”

Makoto didn’t know whether Haru actually meant it or if he was just saying it to spare his feelings, but either way, he didn’t care. His green eyes lit up and he grinned wide and pulled Haru into a hug.

“I...thank you, Haru.” He pulled away, still smiling, eyes still glowing with joy, and Haru couldn’t help but smile in return. He cupped his boyfriend’s cheeks and gently pulled him into a slow, sweet kiss.

“Happy Valentine’s Day, Haru-chan,” Makoto said when they pulled apart.

Haru blushed slightly and looked away. “You too, Makoto.”

Makoto took Haru’s hands into his and looked over at the catastrophe decorating the sink and the counters and chuckled.

“So,” Makoto said, looking back to Haru. “Wanna go get something to eat?”

Haru bit his lip, hiding another smile, and nodded. “Sure.”

He leaned up to give Makoto another sweet kiss.

_Maybe Valentine’s Day isn’t **so** bad._


End file.
